Global Reflections: VSD Envisioning Cards Extension Set

Global Reflections is a ten-card extension to the Value Sensitive Design Envisioning Cards, developed through the Delft Design for Values Seed Project Design for Values and Critical Raw Materials: Decolonial Justice Perspectives. It brings questions of global justice, epistemic plurality, colonial legacies and relational responsibility into reflection on the design, assessment and governance of technologies.

The extension combines philosophical inquiry, artistic photography and discussion prompts. It can be used independently or alongside the original Envisioning Cards in education, research, design, policy dialogue and community settings. Rather than supplying predetermined answers, it invites participants to examine how problems are defined, whose knowledge counts and which futures their decisions make possible.

What does Global Reflections add?

Global Reflections emerged from research, workshops, and dialogue on climate transitions, critical raw materials, and decolonial justice. Across these engagements, participants raised questions that were not fully captured by the existing envisioning criteria: Who defines the problem? Whose ways of knowing are recognised? How do unequal power relations and colonial histories shape technological decisions?

The extension introduces Global Reflections as an additional envisioning criterion. Its focus is not only on the consequences of a technological decision, but also on the assumptions, relationships and structures through which that decision is made. These questions connect the project’s concern with resource extraction and global supply chains to broader choices about technology, sustainability and justice.

Ten starting points for reflection

The set comprises ten concepts:

Power and Privilege · Epistemic Diversity · Positionality · Universalism · Colonial Legacies · Nature–Human Dichotomy · Relational Responsibility · Common Futures · Complicity and Benefit · Discomfort and Transformation.

Each concept opens a different line of inquiry. Epistemic Diversity asks whose ways of knowing are privileged and what decision-making might look like if led by a community with a different worldview. Universalism questions assumptions that a design or approach can apply equally across contexts. Relational Responsibility asks to whom responsibility is owed and how it is sustained. Discomfort and Transformation invites participants to consider what becomes possible when discomfort is engaged with rather than engineered away.

A co-creative process: concepts, photography and interpretation

The extension was conceived and led by Anna Melnyk, who developed its conceptual framework, secured funding and guided its collaborative development. Angela Díaz contributed to the development and refinement of concepts, the translation of ideas across cultural and disciplinary contexts, and the shaping of the collaborative design process. The SolipsisArt Photographic Collective in Ecuador coordinated the artistic collaboration and curated the photographic contributions.

The development progressed from identifying a conceptual gap and reviewing relevant literature to participatory workshops, conceptual refinement, artistic interpretation, and collaborative curation. Ten photographers each selected a concept and developed photographic interpretations accompanied by an artistic reflection. The final images were selected through a collaborative curatorial process.

The photographs are, therefore, artistic interpretations, not simply illustrations of predefined ideas. They offer another way to encounter the concepts, one that can begin with an image, an association or a question before moving into written discussion. The photographers’ accompanying reflections provide further entry points into the conversation.

Using the toolkit

Each card combines an artistic photograph, a concept, a short explanation and reflection prompts. Facilitators can introduce the concept and questions directly, or begin with the photograph and invite participants to interpret it before revealing the written framing. Artistic reflections may be used instead of, or alongside, the prompts. The cards can also support imaginative reflection without using the written questions.

The extension is intended for workshops, classrooms, research and design projects, policy dialogues and community settings. It can accompany the original Envisioning Cards or function as a stand-alone facilitation instrument for examining decision-making. The companion guide provides background on the extension, suggestions for use, contributor credits, citation details and licence information.

Contributors

Project lead and conceptual development: Anna Melnyk
Co-creation, bridge building and collaborative design: Angela Díaz
Artistic collaboration and photographic curation: SolipsisArt Photographic Collective, Ecuador

Participating photographers: Yinna Higuera, Alejandra Rea, Anay Pillajo, Ivonne Flores, Carol Cortéz, Cristina Chamba, Verónica Alvear, Claudia Ramón, Ximena Troya and Karla Martínez.

Individual photographic credits and their associated concepts are provided in the companion guide.

Citation and acknowledgement

When using the extension, please cite:

Melnyk, A., & Díaz, A. (2026). Global Reflections: Envisioning Cards Extension. Delft Design for Values Institute, Delft University of Technology.

When also drawing on the original Envisioning Cards, please additionally cite the original toolkit as specified in the companion guide.

Global Reflections was developed through the Delft Design for Values Seed Project Design for Values and Critical Raw Materials: Decolonial Justice Perspectives, funded by the Delft Design for Values Institute and supported by the TU Delft Decolonial Working Group.

The set is an independently developed extension, created under license from the University of Washington Value Sensitive Design Lab. It complements the original Envisioning Cards without modifying their content.

Use of the University of Washington, Value Sensitive Design Lab or Envisioning Cards names does not imply endorsement. Please consult the companion guide for the required attribution statements and licence information before reproducing or distributing the extension.